‘Tangerine’, movie shot on an iPhone 5S, getting critical raves

The smartphone revolution has transformed photography and video, putting a powerful and versatile camera in the pocket of anyone who owns one. Now, a new indie film that made waves at the Sundance Film Festival is showing just how far you can push the creative envelope with a smartphone.

“Tangerine”, which earned raves at the festival, was shot almost entirely with an iPhone 5S. Of course, it wasn’t just a matter of director Sean Baker holding the phone at eye level and shouting “Action!”. The iPhone was supplemented both with software and hardware.

So how do you make a Sundance movie for iPhone? You need four things. First, of course, the iPhone (Baker and his team used three). Second, an $8 app called Filmic Pro that allowed the filmmakers fine-grained control over the focus, aperture, and color temperature. Third, a Steadicam. “These phones, because they’re so light, and they’re so small, a human hand — no matter how stable you are — it will shake. And it won’t look good,” says Baker. “So you needed the Steadicam rig to stabilize it.”

The final ingredient was a set of anamorphic adapter lenses that attach to the iPhone. The lenses were prototypes from Moondog Labs, and Baker said they were essential to making Tangerine look like it belonged on a big screen. “To tell you the truth, I wouldn’t have even made the movie without it,” Baker says. “It truly elevated it to a cinematic level.”

It also helped that he used a crew who knew traditional filmmaking, and put the finished product through post-production software and editing that enhanced the look. But the small camera and its portability made unusual shots possible, and won over skeptics on the shoot, including one prominent actor:

At first, the cast wasn’t convinced shooting with the iPhone would work. “I had some hesitancy about it, more out of pride,” says James Ransone, who plays Chester, the pimp at the center of Tangerine’s love triangle. “I’m like, Jesus Christ, man, I was on The Wire. I’ve ended up in iPhone movies!” But Ransone came to appreciate the flexibility of the device. “There’s a lot that can be done with an iPhone.” (One example: Baker shot several scenes while riding his 10-speed bicycle in circles around his actors.)

As you can sense, this isn’t a family-friendly Disney flick. “Tangerine” is a comedy set in the seedier parts of Los Angeles on Christmas Even and features prostitutes, pimps and transgendered central characters. The film was a hit in Sundance’s Next category, which focuses on low-budget productions.

And low-budget it is, including in its promotion. There’s not yet a trailer available, and the filmmakers are usinga Facebook page as their website.

Still, looking atthe critical reaction so far, it appears “Tangerine” is worth seeing, at the very least for its technical achievement. I want to see what a feature-length movie shot on an iPhone looks like.